Missouri State Bears vs Southern Illinois Salukis Prediction, 1/11/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Missouri State Bears vs Southern Illinois Salukis

Date: Saturday, January 11, 2025

Location: Banterra Center in Carbondale, IL

TV: ESPN+

Banterra Center is the location where the Southern Illinois Salukis (5-11) will meet the Missouri State Bears (7-9) on Saturday.

The Missouri State Bears stepped onto the hardwood against UIC and took a loss by a final of 80-63 in their last game. Missouri State finished the game having earned a 45.8% field goal percentage (22 out of 48) and made 6 out of their 16 shots from 3-point land. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Bears buried 13 of 15 tries for a rate of 86.7%. In regard to pulling down rebounds, they compiled 13 with 1 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 11 assists in the matchup in addition to forcing the other team into 10 turnovers and getting 5 steals. Pertaining to defending, Missouri State allowed their opponent to shoot 59.3% from the floor on 32 of 54 shooting. UIC distributed 18 dimes and had 4 steals for this game. On top of that, UIC collected 26 rebounds (5 offensive, 21 defensive), but didn't have a block. UIC finished 50.0% from the charity stripe by making 5 of their 10 tries. They knocked down 11 out of their 20 attempts from 3-point range. In relation to fouls, the Bears ended up finishing with 11 while UIC recorded 16 fouls.

Zaxton King is one guy who was a major factor in the matchup. He accounted for 17 points on 6 out of 10 shooting. He played 30 minutes and also totaled 2 rebounds. He ended up going 60.0% from the floor and dished out 2 dimes.

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Missouri State will enter this contest with a record of 7-9 on the campaign. They average 70.9 points per game (279th in college hoops) while hitting 43.9% from the field. The Bears are shooting 35.2% on shots from 3-point land (112 of 318) and 66.8% from the charity stripe. As a team, Missouri State is collecting 34.1 boards per game and has 196 assists so far this year, which is 256th in Division 1 in terms of passing. They are turning it over 12.6 times per contest and as a group they commit 17.8 fouls every game.

On the defensive end, the Bears are forcing 14.0 turnovers per game and they draw 18.0 fouls. They are giving up 34.7% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 193rd in college in opponents points per game (71.3). The Bears are giving up a shooting percentage of 47.1% (404 of 857) and they concede 32.0 boards per game as a team. They are ranked 211th in the country in allowing assists with 205 conceded this season.

When they last played, the Southern Illinois Salukis took a loss by a score of 90-86 when they played Belmont. When talking about attacking the glass, Southern Illinois permitted Belmont to grab 32 in all (10 on the offensive side). They wrapped up this game 39.1% from three-point range by hitting 9 out of 23 and ended up going 17 of 20 from the free throw line (85.0%). The Salukis allowed Belmont to convert 32 of their 60 attempts from the field which left them with a rate of 53.3% in this contest. When the final whistle blew, the Salukis shot 33 for 66 from the floor which gave them a rate of 50.0%. With regard to three-point attempts, Southern Illinois made 13 of their 31 tries (41.9%). They were able to knock down 7 of the free throw attempts for a clip of 63.6%. Belmont committed 10 personal fouls for the contest which got the Salukis to the free throw line for a total of 11 tries. They also coughed up the ball 9 times, while getting 9 steals in this game. The Salukis snagged 16 defensive boards and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 25 in this matchup.

Ali Abdou Dibba was important for the Salukis in the game. He converted 13 of 23 in the game for a rate of 56.5%, and had 9 rebounds. He accumulated 33 points in his 36 mins on the court and had 1 assist for the game.

Southern Illinois has a mark of 5-11 for the season. On the offensive side of the court, the Salukis are shooting 44.1% from the field, which is 227th in the nation. Southern Illinois has scored 1,152 points on the season (72.0 per game) and they collect 35.6 rebounds per contest. Their rate of assisting teammates is at 14.3 times per contest (161st in D-1) and they are giving up possession 13.1 times per game. The Salukis are responsible for committing 16.6 fouls per contest while shooting 66.3% from the charity stripe.

The Southern Illinois defense concedes 36.8% on three-point shots (130 of 353) and their opposition makes 73.2% of their free throw shots. They relinquish 13.7 dimes and 34.7 total rebounds per game, which ranks 230th and 201st in college. The Salukis defensively are ranked 299th in college hoops in PPG given up with 76.3. They are forcing their opponents into 12.3 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 46.0% from the field (307th in college).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Southern Illinois

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